Headache
by alecsangryface
Summary: Alec gets a headache
**Headache**

Alec winced as the door fell shut with a soft click behind him. Every sound and sight was making him feel just a little bit worse. His temples were throbbing and vision was starting to go dark around its edges.

He could hear Magnus humming out of tune to himself in the kitchen. It was about lunch time, he was probably fixing himself something to eat. Alec's stomach rolled at the thought of food.

He bent down to tug at the laces of his boots but the wave of nausea that crashed over him forced him to slide down the wall, his back pressed firmly against it, until he was huddled on the floor. If he closed his eyes his head didn't hurt as much. So, with very gentle and steady movements, Alec pulled off his boots and set them down softly in their designated space by the door.

He managed to stand without falling again and on shaky legs he proceeded to the kitchen to greet Magnus. He hissed at the brightness of the room, having never noticed just how vibrant the yellow Magnus had picked out for the walls was. Alec pressed the heel of his hands into his eyes in a desperate attempt to alleviate the pressure.

"Hello darling" Magnus was suddenly in front of him, too close and most definitely too loud. Alec attempted not to recoil from him, "How was your morning?"

Alec mumbled unintelligible words and slowly backed out of the room. He collapsed onto the couch as soon as he got near enough to it, his feet dangling off the edge and an arm falling across his eyes in the hope of blocking out the light that somehow filtered through his eyelids. Despite his efforts his head was still pounding.

Magnus didn't leave him for long before he was pushing Alec's feet off the arm of the couch and sinking into the cushions himself. Even just his presence was too loud for Alec to deal with at that time. He felt terrible.

"Are you okay, my love" Magnus' voice was laced with the kind of concern that only came with love. He pulled his feet under him and leant his body against Alec's side so he could brush Alec's hair off his forehead. Alec groaned but that hurt too.

"Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened" Alec replied immediately. Magnus didn't seem to believe him, if the disgruntled noise he made was anything to go by.

"You know you can tell me Alec. I won't be mad" Magnus soothed. He had moved on to tracing the lines in the exposed skin at Alec's hip bones. If it were any other time the soft, uncalloused fingertips on his skin would have been enough to relieve him of every negativity that was slowly seeping into his bones.

"Nothing happened" Alec was becoming impatient and he didn't mean to sound so harsh. But he couldn't tell Magnus what was wrong if wasn't sure himself, "I'm fine. Drop it"

"There's obviously something wrong" Magnus' fingers had stilled upon Alec's tart words and despite his wishes for them to stop, Alec found himself craving those same touches.

"You asking me what's wrong is what's wrong right now" Alec grumbled, "I just need to be alone right now. Please?"

Magnus huffed and stormed off to wherever it was he came from before Alec walked in. Alec wanted to feel sorry for him, or at least upset that it was him that caused Magnus' hurt. Yet he simply couldn't. Indeed, Alec was too consumed by his own pain.

As he laid there, his soft breaths almost unheard but providing a metronome for his thoughts, Alec reflected on his day. He tried – in vain – to figure out where his good mood had begun to dwindle.

He awoke wrapped up and twisted together with Magnus, unsure where one began and the other ended. Magnus was still sleeping when he did, so Alec took the precious few moments he had to attempt to memorise every curve, line a blemish on Magnus' face; just like he did every time he woke first. The day could not have started better.

Then he got called to the Institute for a run of the mill mission. A group of Ravener demons were lose in Harlem and causing havoc for the locals, simple enough to deal with because they'd done it close to a thousand times. The demon wasn't the problem.

Alec longed for the days where he would be on a three person team. He, Izzy and Jace had been together for at least eight years and they _worked_. Then Clary and Simon stumbled into their lives and now he had four people to protect instead of two. He didn't resent them for it, but it was a strain on his senses to monitor that many people as well as focus on his own role.

A tiny group of Ravener demons was fine, the dynamics of the group were not. When it had been just the three of them it was simple: Alec would look out for Izzy and Jace, Izzy would look out for him and Jace would do as he pleased; not the best method, but effective for them. But with Simon and Clary it was completely different. Alec would watched the other four, Izzy would watch Simon and Alec, Simon would watch Izzy and Clary, Clary would watch Simon and Jace, and Jace would do as he wished until Clary was anywhere close to being in danger.

After the successful mission, he had to deal with the drama that came with working with a significant other, and he had never been more thankful for Magnus having the exact opposite job description to him. Jace was mad that Clary would allow herself to get so close to being hurt before she pulled back, said she needed to be more careful. Alec was inclined to agree with him and not just because they were parabatai, Clary was reckless and didn't think her actions through – always content with following her 'gut'; he was once positive that Jace was the most foolhardy person he had ever met, he knew better now. Clary was adamant that Jace needed to stop being so overprotective and Alec agreed with her too. There was little discourse between Simon and Izzy, they just got distracted. Alec didn't blame them, the two had been through enough and he was happy that everything seemed to be working out for them, but he didn't need them being distracted when on a mission, a mission where he was already stretched to the extremes and ran the risk of failing to protect them.

Yet it wasn't the mission that was causing his headache. It certainly caused him a lot of stress and was definitely the reason behind his exhaustion, hence the collapsing on the couch, but there was an overwhelming sadness in him that caused the headache. It might have been from the less than pleasant weather they were having, or the fact that it was a Wednesday, or it could just be that he had been predisposed for sadness. Alec wasn't sure which one was the worse.

Slowly he began to sink into a half sleeping state. His body slept but his mind was still attuned to every noise and movement in the apartment. Chairman was scratching at one of his toys in the kitchen, a sight that warmed Alec's heart for some reason when he was able to watch him do it; maybe it was because he missed having Church at the Institute. Magnus was in his study, arguing with a client about payment, and throwing a potion together as the clinking glass phials and bottles reverberated off the walls.

Alec laid there for what was probably hours, an arm over his eyes, back sunk into the couch cushions and his feet still planted firmly against the floor where Magnus had moved them. It wasn't comfortable in the slightest but any sort of movement sent jolts of electricity through his nerves and to his head, doing nothing for the pain that was still there.

Magnus eventually settled next to him again. He knew better this time, Alec would talk when he was ready so he curled up next to him and laid his head against Alec's chest. The gentle, consistent thumping beat of Alec's heart was enough for him to stop worrying.

"Have you ever felt so sad that your head hurts?" Alec whispered after a time. His spare hand was lazily joined with Magnus', needing the reassurance that things were doing ok and the world wasn't ending. The world couldn't end when the two of them were like this, they were suspended in time and space where nothing mattered but the two of them being close.

"I haven't" Magnus whispered back. He moved so that his chin was pressed into the dip of Alec's chest and he could see his face, "How you express your emotions doesn't have to be the same as someone else for it to be valid"

Alec huffed and let himself smile. Somehow Magnus knew what he needed to hear, without any clue from Alec. It wasn't often that he got so bad that he felt like he was, but when he did the headaches were debilitating. He was grateful that Magnus understood, that he allowed him the solitude when he needed it.

"What was it this time?" Magnus asked gently. Sometimes the sadness came with definite triggers, other times it didn't, Alec had long since given up on trying to figure it out.

"I don't know" Alec sighted and finally moved his arm from his eyes. To his surprise the light that flooded through his eyelids was not as painful. He wasn't going to chance opening his eyes just yet, but knowing that the pain was beginning to alleviate left him hopeful.

"Tell me about your day then" Magnus said decisively.

"Drama. All of it drama" He paused and took a deep breath, "Clary and Jace were arguing, Simon and Izzy were getting distracted. I've never been so happy to not have to work with you"

Magnus hummed, "I feel the same, and I've seen you trying to help me with the simpler potions." Alec found himself laughing for the first time all day. It was still so startling that Magnus could sooth him as easily as anything else he did.

"It's almost four" Magnus whispered after a time of them just holding each other, "Do you want to get something to eat?"

Alec shook his head, wincing at the pain it caused "Right now I think I just want to lie with you in our bed. I'll make something later"

Magnus nodded and began extracting himself from where he was trapped between the back of the couch and Alec. Alec slowly began to open his eyes. They could only open a fraction before the pain was once more searing through his skull, but Magnus never spoke as he laced their fingers together and led him to their bedroom.

"Do you want me to do something for the pain, darling?" Magnus whispered once they were laid under the sheets together. Alec nodded and Magnus moved so that his fingertips hovered over the sides of Alec's head. Blue mist clouds oozed from them to pool at Alec's temples, they seemed to suction onto the skin for the briefest of seconds then they pulled away and pulled the pain with them. Alec finally opened his eyes with a relieved smile.

"I'm sorry I can't do anything about the emotional hurt" Magnus whispered. They both turned to their sides so they could lay facing each other, and so close that their breathing mingled. Magnus traced the hair below Alec's ear, something so small but still so comforting all the same. Alec was content to just twine his fingers with those on Magnus' spare hand.

"You just being here is doing something for it already" Alec whispered back. His intensity made Magnus' breathing hitch almost unnoticeably, but it made him smile. After having so many years of bouncing from one lover to the next exposing more and more of his heart with nothing in return, it felt like coming home when Alec bared just as much of himself as Magnus did.

"You've grown sappy, Lightwood" Magnus murmured, any louder and it would shatter the atmosphere like glass. The quite was for those in love that didn't need to stand of the rooftops to scream their love to world because their world already knew.

"It's all your fault, Bane" Alec smiled softly, his eyes falling half closed. He ducked his head to burrow into the warm circle of Magnus' arms.

"You love it" He felt Magnus' chuckle rather than heard it in the slight shaking of his chest and his arms getting tighter around him.

"I love you more"

"I love you most" Magnus nuzzled his face into the hair on the top of Alec's head. Alec rolled his eyes, and Magnus said that the Lightwoods always had to have the last word.

 **A/N: Review?**


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